1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to image processing and more specifically to enhancing images.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many current information systems store large quantities of digital images. However, the available digital images are often low quality images, resulting in a low-quality viewing experience for users of the systems. For example, map applications often provide views of the surrounding area for a given map location and contain many images of streets and buildings, sometimes obtained from multiple sources, such as aerial and ground photos. Such images may be taken from a large distance, thereby providing broad coverage, but resulting in a lack of the resolution needed to provide a user with fine detail. Furthermore, these images often include “holes,” i.e., missing or obscured portions of the object or scene depicted in the image. As a result, these systems provide users with image data of less than desirable quality.
Some image processing systems apply optimization techniques to automatically enhance images, thereby improving quality of the available image data. However, traditional techniques are very slow. Thus, there is a need for faster ways to perform image enhancement.